Roll shutters



Aug. 20, 1957 H. B. c. wENKE ROLL SHUTTERS Filed May 15, 1955 c Innfnlflnlllllnl,

United States ROLL SHUTTERS Helmuth Berthold Carlos Wenke, Sinn/ Dillkreis, Germany Application May 13, 1955, Serial No. 508,271 Claims priority, application Germany May 22, 1954 3 Claims. (Cl. 160-133) This invention relates to shutters, and more particularly to roll shutters for use with cabinets or other such devices which rnust have open and closed conditions.

As is known, roll shutters have in many instances replaced doors, curtains and similar contrivances, to close receptacles, cabinets, etc., or to blackout windows and similar apertures in order to save space. These roll shutters have been either made of strips of cloth, of individual wooden or metal slats (sections) or of sheet metal. Such roll shutters have various shortcomings.

Roll shutters made of wooden or metal slats (sections) have the drawback that they do not constitute a continuous, uninterrupted area, neither when drawn nor when rolled up. Further, a cleaning thereof, especially with a moist cleansing agent, causes dirt to accumulate between the slats, and the dirt is diicult to remove or it cannot be removed at all. Consequently, roll shutters of this type are not hygienic and they cannot be used wherever it is necessary to apply such sanitary measures as would guarantee the greatest possible cleanliness and afford the possibility of proper cleansing.

Roll shutters of wooden or metal slats are further exposed to atmospheric conditions such as moisture (which may also be contained in the cleanser) and under the influence of the climate, the wood warps and causes the well-known jamming; such as for example, of the roll-tops of oce desks and of the sliding doors of office cabinets; the metal type is eaten away by corrosion. It is difficult to avoid this corrosion for long periods of time, because any corrosion-resistant agent, such as enamel or a similar substance can be applied between the slats only with difliculty, and, unless correctly applied, it will wear off within a short time owing to repeated operation of the shutter.

Roll shutters of continuous sheets of metal (for eX- ample, of corrugated sheet metal) are comparatively rigid, and therefore, they are usable for large areas only (for example, display windows). They, furthermore, do not constitute a smooth, even surface having a pleasing appearance, architecturally or artistically.

Finally, roll shutters made of cloth, for example, window rolling blinds, constitute a continuous area. However, they are never even and will have a wavy and bumpy surface even if they hang loosely. It is difcult to move such shutters laterally, and they are easily displaced from their guides. Further, the snap mechanism used with such shutters is delicate, as is for instance, shown on the rolling blinds which are used in railroad care. Also, roll shutters of cloth are not sufficiently rigid and do not provide a secure closure. They have a limited life-span and are easily damaged.

Roll shutters are the most appropriate devices for closing cabinets or the various types of receptacles or spaces, which, for reasons of hygiene, must be cleaned with special care and thoroughness. At the same time, they are space-saving devices. However, available roll shutters do not, as noted, fulfill these requirements.

Briefly, this invention relates to a roll shutter which comprises strips which are formed into pockets. Preferably the material from which such strips are made is synethtic fibre. Slats preferably of a strong light metal sheeting, are introduced into the pockets thus producing a roll shutter of metal slats which is bounded by continuous strips of material which may be cleaned without diculty and are satisfactory from a hygienic point of view.

Other objects and advantages as well as the structural details of the invention will be apparent from the following description and claims when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawing, showing a preferred embodiment of the invention, wherein:

Fig. 1 is a vertical view of a roll shutter according to the invention,

2. A roll shutter as claimed in claim 1 comprising rivets to Fig. 1,

3. A roll shutter as claimed in claim 2 wherein said to line III- III of Fig. 1,

Fig. 4, on yan enlarged scale, is a sectional view according to line IV-IV of Fig. 2, and

Fig. 5, on a larger scale, is a fragmentary sectional view of a piece of the rim of a roll shutter according to Fig. l.

Referring now to Figs. 1-3, a roll shutter is shown consisting of two strips 1 and 1 which are superimposed on each other and which are made of a polyadiparnid or similar fabric; the strips 1 and 1 are subdivided in narrow pockets 3 (cf. Fig. 3) by means of a V-seam 2 (Figs. 1 3) these seams are spaced at equal distances from each other.

Into the pockets 3 are inserted the corrosion-resistant slats 4 of a light metal so that through the connection between the fabric and the metal slats a compact, but nevertheless elastic roll shutter is formed, which can be moved with ease. The ends of the metal slats 4, together with the edges of fabric 1, are firmly held together, on both sides of this roll shutter, by means of metal caps 5 so that the fabric is securely fastened to the metal slats.

To fasten the metal caps 5, the rivets 6 (Figs. 4 and 5) of a light metal are provided. The heads thereof, on both sides, have the shape of semi-spheres. The semisperical heads of rivets 6 serve to guide and to retain the roll shutter in flutes 12 of the lateral guide rails 7.

A grasping ledge 8 is welded to the bottom of the roll shutter; by means of grasp 9 it serves for the operation of the roll shutter.

It should be noted that the roll shutter described, while performing all the necessary functions of a roll shutter, presents a continuous surface which is easily cleaned. The roll shutter is further strong and resistant to atrnospheric conditions.

There will now be obvious to those skilled in the art many modifications and variations utilizing the principles set forth and realizing many or all of the objects and advantages of the apparatus described but which do not depart essentially from the spirit of the invention.

What I claim is:

1.,A roll shutter cooperative with guide rails comprising a plurality of slats which are parallel to each other, two strips of exible material which are super-imposed on each other, said strips being fastened together by transverseseams separated by a greater distance than the width of said slats whereby pockets are formed wherein said slats are accommodated and caps fastening said strips to the `ends of said slats and covering the ends of said pockets and forming guiding meansengaging in said guide rails for positioning said roll shutter.

2. A roll shutter as claimed in iclaim l `comprising rivets and wherein said caps are metal and are secured to said slats by means of said rivets, saidv rivets having rivet heads 4 protruding on both ends, said guide rails being provided References Cited in the le of this patent with utes accommodating said rivet heads. l UNIT 3. A roll shutter as claimed in claim 2 wherein said ED STATES PATENTS rivet heads are semi-spherical and said tltes are concave 1,627,736 Halvqrsen May 10 1927 to accommodate said rivet heads. 25641197 Dobkm Aug- 14 1951 2,667,218 Collins Jan. 26, 1954 

